Leading Women Review

It was a good programme that, despite only being a week, packed in a lot of activities and gave a good experience of the team I was working with. The tasks they gave me to complete were interesting and varied and I also got to shadow meetings and client calls which was interesting.

Everyone on the team was very welcoming. I was partnered with a buddy who made sure that I was introduced to everyone and I could always turn to her for anything. The members of the team I worked with made me feel very valued and the work I did for them they made sure that I felt like it was valuable and had a purpose and they appreciated me doing it.

The tasks I was set had instructions but there was little guidance after that, however, for most tasks this was not needed and it was a good experience of problem solving rather than hand-holding. My buddy checked in with my periodically and was always there for any problems I had.

I was using analytical tools and software which will be helpful in my degree as I do a lot of data analysis in that. I also did quite a bit of problem solving which is always a vital tool in my (and any) degree. Also experience in the work force and in meetings/presentations will always be useful.

Structure was quite flexible, a lot of activities or tasks were not planned in advance but that meant they could be more personalised to me. There were a few structured activities but again for most of these activities the timing was flexible so if they needed to be moved they could be.

The team made me feel really welcome and appreciated. Everyone was really helpful and friendly and seemed happy to have me. A lot of different people gave up time for me either just to network with them or for me to shadow them or do tasks with/for them which made me feel welcome.

Lots of members of staff gave up time for me so there was a large investment in time. Also I was provided with technology and software which was a reasonable investment in me, especially for only a few days. I was taken out to lunch twice in a week and had meetings with higher members of the team to discuss my personal development.

Very full days working on small parts of a lot of different projects which gave me an insight into all the different work happening in the team. However, working at the firm I would normally only have one project at a time and I was also completing assessments during the week so it wasn't exactly like working there but it gave me enough insight.

Lots of people talked to me about how they find the company and its culture and also how it compared to other places they had worked. From spending a few days with people I got enough insight to get a feel for the place and the people to understand the culture.

I will be paid around £10 an hour for the duration of the course however there were no expenses. As I was getting the train in every day this wasn't a problem as 2 hours wages covered my train fare but some people had to get a hotel in London and the pay probably doesn't cover living expenses in London.

My buddy made sure I was introduced to many different members of the team and got a chance to talk one-on-one with specific staff members who we had similar interests or were experienced enough to give me good careers advice and guidance. I met lots of different people which was useful.

It was a really good way to get a taster of EY if you don't have time for a full internship. The company made the week interesting and varied and it is a really good programme and I'm very glad I have participated in it. If you think you are interested in business I recommend it.